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Photo: Ontario Tourism, 2010

IN THIS ISSUE - HIGHLIGHTS

Toronto Looks Good on You

Pan Am Games update

Many media visits

Lots of Latin American news

G20 By The Numbers
Delegates and media for the G8 and G20 Summits have already begun to arrive in Toronto for this weekend's summits. Here are some noteworthy statistics about this important opportunity for Toronto:

Estimated spending by delegates is $53 million (including hotels and restaurants but not including convention centres and services)

The summit will consume approximately 114,000 hotel room nights

Tourism Toronto and its partners have hosted 54 key international media on advance press tours to showcase Toronto's diversity, culture and global business edge

Tourism Toronto and its partners have staff in the media centre 24 hours a day all week long to provide Toronto information to media for their stories and to encourage them to explore Toronto while they are here

200 volunteers and Tourism Toronto staff are welcoming delegates at hotels and other locations around the city to deliver on our "We've Been Expecting You" commitment

Show Us Your Love
Tourism Toronto has launched an exciting new initiative this summer designed to leverage the many informal "ambassadors" that live in and visit Toronto. We know how much people love Toronto and we are giving them a chance to tell the world. Tourism Toronto is setting up social media networking hubs at select festivals in 2010 (Luminato, Pride, Caribana, Nuit Blanche) and inviting people to drop by and record a video about why they love Toronto. After it is wrapped in the Toronto brand, it is then shared with their social networks on Facebook, Twitter and via email, instantly.
The videos are being housed on TorontoLooksGoodOnYou.com and will also be used in future campaigns in key U.S. cities to target young, up and coming travellers. Visit now to see what people are saying!
Toronto 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games Update
The priority for Toronto 2015 is to "build the team" as stated by Ian Troop at the Sport Alliance of Ontario 2015 Toronto Pan/Parapan American Games meeting held on May 29 in Toronto. During this half-day session the Sport Alliance of Ontario brought provincial sport organizations together to get a sense of the Pan Am Games' vision, among other things. Toronto 2015 has started to fill senior roles and it is working with venues to try to ensure they are spread throughout the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Toronto plans to be ready for test events by mid-2014 for the newly built venues. Once key people are ready to discuss the accommodation needs we will reach out to our hotel community to get that process started. In the meantime, questions can be directed to Shelley Crawford at scrawford@torcvcb.com.
Press Trips Galore
In partnership with Air Canada, TT's Media Relations lead a group of media from Barcelona from June 7-10. During the group's three nights in Toronto they explored Toronto's diverse culture, culinary and theatre scenes. Writers are with publications such as El Mundo, Dominical Periodico Cataluna and AVUI, among others.

Luminato and North by North East festivals were the draw for a group of U.K.-based press led by Media Relations June 16-20. The Trinity Mirror group, The Newcastle Journal, Daily Mail and Sunday Telegraph were represented.

TT hosted a group of 15 North American music critics for the start of Luminato and they met with a TD Toronto Jazz Festival representative and experienced six venues while in the city.

Working with the Canadian Embassy in France, TT hosted two groups in advance of the G20 Summit June 13 and 19. All the major European countries were represented and media outlets such as the BBC, Daily Telegraph, Financial Times, L'Atelier, Les Échos, Usine Nouvelle and Trends took part.
U.K. Sales Mission
A representative from TT's International Leisure sales team just returned from a week long sales trip to the U.K. in tandem with Ontario Tourism and eight Ontario suppliers. The group met with 22 key U.K. trade clients and provided destination sales training to over 200 reservations staff and travel agents affiliated with these operators. U.K. trade clients reported an increase in advance bookings to Ontario 2010 and are optimistic that travel will remain strong though late summer and fall 2010. Wonderland Campaign
Targeting Ontario markets such as London, Windsor, Kingston and Ottawa, TT has launched a multi-media campaign promoting regional hotel packages that include Canada's Wonderland. The campaign runs from mid-June to mid-July and details of the package can be viewed here.Supporting the Industry
On May 26, Tourism Toronto was proud to support MTCC President and CEO Barry Smith, 2010 Chair of the PCMA Education Foundation, at the annual black-tie Foundation Dinner. Strategic association clients rounded out several tables at the dinner, an annual event that sees nearly 400 industry leaders gather to recognize the important work of the PCMA Foundation and the contributions of a few extraordinary individuals. TT recognizes the importance of continuing education in our industry and continues to look for opportunities like this to demonstrate our commitment to our clients, our partners and the industry as a whole.
Latinos Love Toronto
As a result of a recent media visit hosted by TT, Travel + Leisure Mexico included Toronto in an article about Canada in its May issue. The magazine reaches 46,500 travel-oriented readers. In addition, multiple articles ran in prominent Argentinean publications Clarin, Los Andes and La Capital adding up to daily circulation of over 1 million.
Argentinean Sales Efforts
Tourism Toronto, in partnership with Air Canada Argentina, recently hosted 11 product managers and sales staff from nine key Buenos Aires-based tour operators who have partnered with TT to market our destination in Argentina. While in Toronto, these clients conducted site inspections and visited numerous attractions featured in the programs sold by the tour operators as part of a marketing campaign running in Buenos Aires from May to August this year. This is part of TT's ongoing sales efforts to position Toronto as an exciting urban holiday destination to Argentinean travellers.
National Geographic Travels to Toronto
TT worked with a writer from National Geographic Traveler - China who was in Toronto for an extended visit as part of a G20 pre-fam trip on May 19, but rounded out her experience with trips to many attractions and member facilities. The special edition of the magazine is expected out in August. Other countries represented on the G20 pre-fam trip were Argentina, France, India, Italy, Japan and South Korea.
A Streetcar Named Satisfaction
Twenty four meeting planners from both the Association and Corporate markets along with eight Tourism Toronto members enjoyed an evening of networking and traveling around the city on the TTC's antique streetcar on June 10. Our "Streetcar to Satisfaction" included a dine-around at three of Toronto's great hot spots and a team adventure looking for Toronto's "hidden gems" along the route. We showcased the city's great flair, culture and hospitality!
Fodor's for Foodies
As a result of TT hosting a writer from Fodor's in early May, the article 48-Hour Foodie Trip: Toronto appeared on Fodors.com. The site offers current and discerning shopping, dining, hotel and culture recommendations and receives nearly 400,000 unique visitors per month.Soccer Nets Great Opportunities
TT's Sports, SMERF and Provincial Association sales teams joined forces with hotel members to entertain 10 high-value clients at the Toronto FC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps game on June 2. Building and maintaining key client relationships is the best game plan for more success. The team looks forward to scoring more leads in these segments!
Toronto Springs Up in D.C.
On May 27, Team Toronto exhibited at ASAE and The Center's annual Springtime EXPO which this year played host to approximately 2,300 meeting planners and over 4,000 total meeting industry professionals. Our chic Imaginarium-themed tradeshow booth was a hit and inspired great conversation amongst our staff, clients and members. This critical event is the single largest on the Washington, D.C. industry calendar and presents an unparalleled opportunity to initiate, develop and sustain client relationships that continue to result in business opportunities for the community.

Upcoming Meetings & Conventions (800+ Delegates)

Dates

Meeting/Group Name

Attendees

Jun 25-27

Sing Fai Sports Club - Asian Community Games

3,500

Jun 25-Jul 9

Shriners - Imperial Council

10,000

Jun 27-Jul 1

International Corporate Governance Network

800

Jun 29-Jul 9

Tournament Time - Toronto Cup 2010

1,200

Jun 30-Jul 2

Argonaut Rowing Club - Canada Day Regatta

1,500

Jul 1-5

Croatian Fraternal Union of America

1,500

Jul 8-18

Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineer

1,000

Jul 16-28

Royal Canadian Golf Association - RBC Canadian Open

8,000

Jul 16-Aug 2

American Contract Bridge League

1,300

Jul 19-24

Rolls Royce Owners' Club

1,000

Jul 19-25

Field Hockey Ontario

2,000

Golf Tournament Still Has Sponsorship Opportunities
The Greater Toronto Hotel Association's 56th Annual Golf Tournament, co-hosted by Tourism Toronto, on Thursday, July 8 is now fully booked by eager duffers. However there are still sponsorships available. If you are interested in taking advantage of one of these opportunities, please fill out this form. If you have questions please contact either Kelly Ing at the GTHA (416-351-1276 or king@gtha.com) or Denise Belgrove at Tourism Toronto (416-203-3823 or dbelgrove@torcvb.com). Raffle and Silent Auction Supports Scholarships
The golf tournament just got even more exciting because one lucky golfer at the event is going to win two domestic Air Canada tickets! Raffle tickets for the flights will be sold at the event and are $5 each or 5 for $20. Proceeds are directed to scholarship funds in Tourism and Hospitality for high-achieving students who demonstrate financial need at Ryerson and Guelph Universities, and George Brown, Humber, Centennial and Seneca Colleges. There will be many great prizes to bid on during the silent auction like concert tickets, Muskoka vacations and Grand Slam golf packages. Silent auction and raffle are open to golf participants only.
Welcome Tourism Toronto's Newest Members

Did you know? The HMS Bounty, which will be in Toronto for the Redpath Toronto Waterfront Festival, was built for the 1962 movie "Mutiny on the Bounty" by MGM Studios in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia to tell the story of the famous maritime mutiny that occurred in the South Pacific in 1789.

We want to hear your feedback on this newsletter. Please contact Cathy Riches via newsletter@torcvb.com with your thoughts and suggestions.

Tourism Toronto is the sales and marketing organization for Greater Toronto's diverse and compelling tourism experiences, representing 1,200 member businesses. Visit us at www.SeeTorontoNow.com.